Medical Illustration in the Courtroom: Proving Injury, Causation, and Damages

Medical Illustration in the Courtroom: Proving Injury, Causation, and Damages educates the readers on how to communicate science visually in criminal and forensic case, using art and utilizing visualization technologies.

Medical illustration bridges the gap from technical, medical, and scientific to the lay person to easily illustrate, and explain visually, a medical condition, negligence, or the causation of an injury or death. Medical artists are frequently charged with illustrating injuries and medical conditions that can’t be seen by the naked eye. And while using medical photography and imaging can be helpful, it can often be unclear or mystifying to an untrained eye. This is where the medical illustrator enters the equation. There are often patients who have recovered from an injury or infection that appear in good health. Should and unforeseen injury or fatality happen, medical illustrators can allow people to see what’s on the inside to allow an attorney to explain, in the courtroom, what was really going on. While some attorneys utilize medical artists, it is often difficult for nonvisual people to see the value of demonstrative aids until they utilize them.

When attorneys and their clients enlist the aid of medical artists, it quickly becomes apparent that properly conceived and executed artwork is invaluable to illustrating the facts—and medical impacts—of any number of scenarios: homicides by shooting, stabbings, vehicular accidents, in addition to medical malpractice and injuries resulting from surgery or possible negligence. Presenting the myriad services and technologies that can be utilized, the book provides demonstrative medical illustrations used in cases that illustrate techniques, the purposes of using a specific technique, and tools and “tricks of the trade” to create an effective image. Such images are educational to attorneys, judges, and juries to help create a visual storyline, the ultimate goal being to help combine art and science to provide a clear illustration of events to help in adjudicating legal and forensic cases.

Medical Illustration in the Courtroom presents medical illustration, animation, and interactive applications that will help anyone educating an audience about biomedical science: this includes attorneys, physicians, nurses, medical device, and pharmaceutical companies.